Lord Bassam of Brighton: My right honourable friend the Minister of State for Transport (Rosie Winterton) has made the following Ministerial Statement.
	I attended the transport session of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council, held in Luxembourg on 2 October. The Portuguese Minister for Public Works, Transport, and Communications, Mr Mario Lino, was in the chair.
	At the June council, transport Ministers agreed a resolution calling on the Commission to submit proposals on ways to take forward the Galileo satellite navigation programme, following acknowledgement by that council that the PPP process had failed. Accordingly, on 19 September the Commission issued a communication dealing with costs, risks, procurement and governance, together with a proposal for amendment of the Galileo financing regulation and provision for funds to be transferred from the margin available under the agriculture and administration budget headings, to fund Galileo in the competitiveness heading (1A).
	With insufficient time for member states to give detailed consideration to the communication or to seek the views of national Parliaments, discussion on Galileo was confined to an exchange of views. In the exchange, there was wide support for the Galileo project and for reaching an integrated decision by the end of this year. The council conclusions reflect these points. In the discussion I made clear the UK's strongly held view that the project should offer value for money for the community, our opposition to a revision of the financial perspectives, and our firm view that, if the community decides to proceed with a public procurement of Galileo, any additional funding should be found by reprioritisation within heading IA.
	Following its agreement in principle in June, the council adopted a resolution to establish an EU regional data centre for long-range identification and tracking (LRIT) of ships. This will create a single EU system for ship tracking, in line with the requirements of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). A decision was required prior to the participation of EU member states in the IMO's Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) meeting, starting on 3 October. I welcomed the establishment of the data centre, while noting some remaining concerns on system integration and cost-sharing. We also presented these concerns in writing. A UK proposal to set up an ad hoc working group to address these issues was supported by the presidency, the Commission, and a number of member states.
	The council reached a general approach on the draft directive on road infrastructure safety management. The text of the general approach is acceptable to the UK.
	The council reached a general approach on each of two proposals on rail interoperability and safety which have been negotiated together. They are a directive on interoperability of the community rail system, combining three previous directives, and a directive amending the 2004 directive on rail safety. The general approach texts on these two proposals are acceptable to the UK and successfully deal with our original concerns on establishing a clearer approach as to how the extension to the whole of the member states rail system will be taken forward.
	The presidency and the Commission reported on the outcome off the 36th assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in Montreal. The outcome on emissions trading had been disappointing. The Commission wished to examine possible further action, either within ICAO or at the forthcoming UN negotiations in December, and suggested that the Transport Council return to this issue at its November meeting.
	The council adopted a decision giving a mandate for the Commission to open negotiations on a comprehensive aviation agreement with Canada. The terms of the mandate are acceptable to the UK.
	The council adopted conclusions on the Commission's communication on An Action Plan for Airport Capacity, Efficiency and Safety in Europe. The conclusions were acceptable to the UK.
	Under AOB, the Commission presented its green paper on urban transport, entitled Towards a New Culture for Urban Mobility. The Commission noted the consultation deadline of 15 March 2008 and the intention to publish an action plan in autumn 2008.
	I have written to the Chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee, House of Commons, and the Chairman of the Select Committee on the European Union, House of Lords, detailing the outcome of the session. Copies of these letters have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Lord Bassam of Brighton: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Tom Harris) has made the following Ministerial Statement.
	The policy of transferring to local highway authorities the responsibility for trunk roads that are considered to be non-core was first set out in the White Paper A New Deal for Transport, published in July 1998 (Cm 3950).
	Following advice from the Highways Agency, informed by discussions with the relevant authorities, I have now decided that the following routes should be removed from the announced detrunking programme and remain part of the strategic road network, maintained and operated by the Highways Agency:
	M32 (Bristol to M4 Junction 19);A36/A46 (from M4 near Bristol to M27 near Southampton); and M65 (Junctions 8 to 10).
	I have written to the appropriate local highway authorities and relevant Members of Parliament, outlining the reasons for my decision. Copies of the letters to the Members of Parliament have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Lord Rooker: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Shaun Woodward) has made the following Ministerial Statement.
	I have today placed in the Libraries of the House papers relating to decisions that have been taken during the period 25 April to 5 May 2007 which relate to the north-south implementation bodies and Tourism Ireland Ltd under the terms of the exchange of notes of 19 November 2002 (Cmnd 5708).